cannot access some popular websites from Linode, geolocation is wrong, ARIN is to blame?

Sun Mar 3 23:48:50 UTC 2013

On 3/2/13, Constantine A. Murenin <mureninc at gmail.com> wrote:
> On 2 March 2013 15:45, Owen DeLong <owen at delong.com> wrote:
>>> Now, back to ARIN:  is Linode doing it right?  Is vr.org doing it
>>> wrong?  Are they both doing it correct, or are they both wrong?
> They have repeatedly disagreed, on two separate occasions, effectively
> claiming they themselves are the customers:

... they are assigning IP addresses to their own equipment, which
belongs to the provider at all times, and the contact can be the same
contact for all their resources, therefore:   they are not necessarily
required to display a SWIP in WHOIS.  They just need to keep certain
documentation.

Network service providers that allocate or assign IP addresses are
required to display allocations/assignments of /29 and larger in
WHOIS;   they can display any additional divisions in WHOIS that the
org deems sensible for their network.

However, (1) This isn't very pertinent to gelocation.  ARIN resource
holders don't have to SWIP their different datacenter networks  that
are all assigned to the provider, and (2) don't need to  provide a
street address for their listings that has a bearing on where the
network is actually geographically located,  WHOIS listings are
contacts.

Also, a SWIP would probably not stop have stopped Yelp, et al.   from
blocking the network.

If it's in the IP address space of a VPS hosting provider.   If the
provider is large enough, it is almost certain that someone will have
conducted activity, causing large portions of the provider's IP space
to be blocked,  and this is just part of the risk cost of hosting your
site there.

(You get a lower upfront dollar price, compared to setting up your own
network and obtaining /24 direct assignment from an upstream,  because
you are sharing a network with other subscribers,  but when one of
those other subscribers commits some abuse -- your orgs VPS could be
on the blocked network too)

If you have issues with Linode's  WHOIS listing policies, there are
plenty of alternative providers; although they may be susceptible to
similar blocks by Yelp etc.

> Could work with IPv6, since I have a /56 from them, but I only have a
> single IPv4, so, per my understanding, an IPv4 SWIP is not possible.

It's conceivable to list a /32   on a RWHOIS server.
But Linode do not have to do it, and most likely they will not be
willing to do it.

It is not unusual that a hosting provider would be unwilling to take
on the additional cost of maintaining indinvidual WHOis listings for
each subscriber.

Or to change their WHOIS policy  based on the request of one customer;
 possibly increasing their  WHOIS record management costs by a
significant amount.

> C.
--
-JH